Tom Waits - Bad As Me

For forty years there has been one man constantly reinventing himself. Like an immortal chameleon he has changed his colors and stripes with every album that he has made. From the smokey nightclubs of the 70's to the amphitheaters of today, the setting in which the music is played, not only compliments the music, but seems to be intertwined within it. He is little known outside his cult following and goes by his given name, Tom Waits. His work has been covered by what seems like everyone in music, from The Eagles to Alex Chilton. Scarlett Johansson even made a cover album that consisted of almost entirely Tom Waits. The life story of Waits will take years to be told (he said it won't be until he's at the end of his rope), and he rarely gives interviews. So the closest to an inside look lies in his music, which should be good enough for just about everybody.

Starting out his career with Closing Time, Waits was a 23-year old youth with a passion for lounges and jazz. Just a year later he released the fitting follow-up Heart Of Saturday Night, bringing a sense of folk and blues to the jazz clubs and small rooms in which he routinely played. It was at this moment that his music took a turn onto the path that we hear today. 1975's Nighthawks At The Diner starts out like the smooth jazz we were used to, but Waits' smooth and sultry voice had been transformed into something comparable to gargling Johnnie Walker, thumbtacks, and hair spray whilst smoking four packs of cigarettes. Since that moment his music has evolved from the back alley jazz to the blues, to the experimental, to the point where no genre could ever really comprehend it. Tom Waits transcends genres and his music raises beyond any sort of label. If someone were to ask you "What does he sound like?", you would have to put on one of his records and say "This". Nearly forty years has passed, and he's still pushing music.

Tom Waits - Bad As Me

As soon as the record begins to play, the insanity begins. A great horn riff layered on top of different instruments, Tom Waits is the conductor on the train leading us in "Chicago". The song stays in the same mood and tone until the ending where the train begins to leave the station and Waits is screaming "All aboard!". The follow-up is "Raised Right Man" which, broken down to its core, is a song comprised of just Waits' voice and the percussion keeping rhythm; just like a brush drum beat to the songs he used to sing off of Small Change (i.e. "Step Right Up"). The production gives a deep and gritty feel while other instruments join in later on. In a nutshell, this song exemplifies the career of Tom Waits over the last decade. A rough production, harsh vocals, and the pinpoint-accurate accompaniment.

Representing the early years of his career is "Talking At The Same Time". The vocals shy away from the snarl and become a higher ranged sound. In the chorus when Waits sings "...and every body's talking at the same time", it's as if the music is playing on an old Depression-era silent movie and the vocals are the cold breeze brushing up against exposed skin. The subject matter tackles some more current issues as Waits sings "We bail out all of the millionaires, they got my fruit and my dime". In a more upbeat track, "Get Lost" comes to us like a playful bounce of a song. The vocal melody sounds like a roller coaster, going up and down and changing inflection, a prolific tactic that Tom Waits has used over the years. Next up is "Face To The Highway". The song comes in a very decrepit tone, playing very slowly throughout and relying mostly on very enchanting guitars. A very pretty song, but it takes a backseat to me compared to some of the other songs like it on the album.


"Pay Me" comes at you in a very accordion-heavy duet with piano, sounding a lot like a late night in Italy. The song, while maybe not intending to be, is as if Tom is reflecting on his life. When Tom starts singing "They pay me not to go home..." there is a genuine sense of sadness and self-empathy. All of this continues to the fantastic ending where Waits' tone has matches the mood of forfeit. Another slow paced song, "Back In The Crowd", follows. With just a guitar and vocals, this song relies on Waits' crooning abilities. It may not sound like Sinatra, but Tom Waits has an uncanny ability to make his voice fit in any song and for it to sound near perfect. This somber-toned is the direct sequel to "Pay Me", advancing the sadness and self-reflection that came before it.

The title track brings the tempo back up with its gritty atmosphere. "Bad As Me" sounds like some of the more recent work Waits has done, but features something seldom heard on any of his catalog. While most of the album sounds as if it is being played through a tin can and string, there's a moment where the vocals shift to a crystal clear tone and Waits' voice becomes a low address to the listener. "Kiss Me" is a piano-bass-vocal structured song that embraces the "gritty jazz-revival" that Waits has been nearly the sole member of for the past decade. It's in this song that the lyrics get somewhat personal again, hearing Waits slowly speak out "kiss me like a stranger once again".

One of my favorites on the album and possibly Tom Waits song in general is "Satisfied". The vocals sound like a Waits-take on a Jim Morrison vocal track, and there's a distinct feel that the song could have fit perfectly on the 1999 release Mule Variations (my personal favorite Waits album). The horns and keyboards take over during the vocal break near the end and push the song to its fitting ending. Then "Last Leaf" starts to play and immediately it sounds like something off of 1992's Bone Machine. Vocally the album is really soft, not a lot of singing and when there is it sounds like whispering. The guitar plays a sort of lullaby and creates quite the lovely tone.

The gates to hell open up on "Hell Broke Luce", Waits' take on the war and military. The rhythm is moving and it creates a sort of fun atmosphere with Waits' vocals reciting like an army captain. The powerful chorus comes in after you get to hear the line "how many ways can you polish up a turd". In the ending there's gunfire and more commands, until it dwindles down into silence. The closer "New Year's Eve" is a stripped down, romantic song with a soft melody. This song is a very easy-listen and is quite the fitting ending to the album. In what may be a note to his lovely wife; Waits keeps a lot bottled up, but exercises a few of his demons and puts them to bed with this beautiful closing track.

After hearing the album a few times and letting it all sink in, a lot can change from your first impressions. Just like every other album Tom Waits has done, you discover new things with each listen. Some tracks get better, some tracks start to fade, but there is no instance of a "bad song". Blending together the influences and sounds of the past twenty years, Tom Waits has released what sounds like a mix of Mule Variations and Bone Machine, with an eclectic paprika on top. All of the ingredients used in the recipe has baked his best work in 12 years.

Recommended Listens: "Chicago", "Talking At The Same Time", "Satisfied", "Hell Broke Luce"

Recommended If You Like: Tom Waits, alternative-jazz-revival-grit, songwriting

Verdict: 9 / 10